Friends of Manor Park

23/03/2026

Manor Park - A huge thank you to everyone who joined our Spring Volunteer Morning today!

What a fantastic turnout — around 30 volunteers of all ages came along, and together we got everything on the task list done. That’s no small achievement.
🛠️ Today we managed:
• Planting new hedging
• Planting a few young trees
• Building more sections of dead hedge
• Spreading woodchip across some of our informal paths

It was brilliant to see so many people pitching in — families, regulars, first‑timers, and neighbours who simply wandered over to help. These mornings really show what community action looks like.

A special thank you to the generous woman who donated a very posh cake for our tea break — it was very much appreciated and enjoyed by all.

Sessions like this genuinely make a difference to the park we all share, and we’re incredibly grateful for the time, energy, and care you bring.

🌱 Weekday volunteering
If you’d like something more regular, our friendly weekday team meets every Monday and Thursday, 10am–12 noon. Drop us a line at [email protected].

Thank you again to everyone who came out this morning — Manor Park is better for it.

— On behalf of the team at Friends of Manor Park CIC

A special thank you to James Campbell for the photography and Howard Gregory who organised a lot of the trees we planted.

11/06/2025

We're pleased to announce that local yoga🧘‍♀️ trainer, Katie Crawley, is launching a weekly daytime yoga session in Manor Park. These are outdoor sessions surrounded by greenery🌳🌻.

If you'd like to get involved, turn up with a mat on the day or drop Katie a line via email or connect on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/holistic.katie

We're delighted to see the park used for a wide range of activities.

17/03/2025

A massive thank you to all the residents who came out to support our March Volunteer Morning. It was a great success. Apart being very social, our 28 volunteers cleared 30m of undergrowth, built a dead hedge and planted 87 trees.

Visit our site for a full report 👇
https://ourmanorpark.org.uk/2025/03/17/report-march-volunteer-morning/

24/02/2025

We're back in Manor Park for our 2nd Volunteer Morning of the year - Saturday 15th March 10am-1pm. All welcome.

What are we doing?
Tree-planting
Litter-picking
Bramble-bashing
Building a dead hedge

Important info
Meet by the railway bridge
Wear warm clothes
Wellies or boots advisable
Refreshments served
Bring a bottle of water
Children must be accompanied

More info:
www.ourmanorpark.org.uk

16/02/2025

Manor Park -We Need Your Help!

Do you use the paths in the park? Would you like to see more?

You may already know that Friends of Manor Park successfully secured NCIL funding (a local tax on building development, allocated by the council) to create the new path in the park in 2023. Our vision is to extend this further—eventually completing a full perimeter path with interconnecting routes - giving you full all year round access to the entire park. However, this is a significant project, with costs exceeding £200K, so we are delivering it in phases.

What We’ve Achieved So Far
Phase 1 is complete! This includes a circular path around the front field and connecting paths to the road—providing a safe, accessible circuit for residents to walk, jog, or enjoy the park in all seasons.

What’s Next?
We are now preparing to apply for the next round of NCIL funding, which will be allocated by the Malden and Coombe Neighbourhood Committee in May or July. We’ve successfully passed the first hurdle (you have to apply to apply!) and are now working with RBK officers to submit our project plan.

For Phase 2, we are requesting £40K to build 168m of new paths—extending from the existing route (marked in purple) into and through the rear wooded meadow area (marked in red). This will bring us one step closer to completing a full park loop, with Phase 3 focusing on the final section around the large sports field at the back.

How You Can Help
We need your voice! Your experiences will help shape the application and strengthen our case. If you’ve used the new path, we’d love to hear how it has improved your experience of the park—whether it’s helped with accessibility, made jogging or exercising easier, or simply enhanced your time outdoors.
These testimonials will be included in the report that councillors will review before voting. A few words from you could make a real difference!

How to share your thoughts:
Comment below
Email us at [email protected]

Please include your name and a bit about yourself (e.g., parent, dog walker, retired park user) to help provide context.

Thank you for supporting Manor Park—we can’t wait to make it even better together! 🌳🚶‍♂️🏃‍♀️

13/02/2025

We’ve been busy in Manor Park creating something that’s great for wildlife, sustainable, and looks fantastic—a 30-metre dead hedge! But what exactly is a dead hedge, and why are we so excited about it?

Find out how it works, why it matters, and how our amazing volunteers made it happen! 👇

📖 Read more here: https://ourmanorpark.org.uk/2025/02/13/3761/

Dead Hedging in Manor Park We love dead hedges. They’re a simple, sustainable way to work with nature, and we’ve been busy putting them to good use! Our first one went up by the entrance near the railway bridge, and now, on a roll, we’re adding more. Today, our Weekday Womble team built an imp...

09/02/2025

A big thank-you to the 30 local volunteers who turned out on cold, drizzling, grey Saturday morning to help make the park that big nicer. Read our blog on the event, and see all the great work that was done:

We held our February Volunteer Morning on a cold, dark, and drizzly Saturday, unsure how many people would brave the weather. But our worries quickly faded as one by one, volunteers arrived, bringing our total to an impressive 30—ranging in age from 10 to 82. Our tasks for the day were twofold: sp...

11/01/2025

Frozen park

19/12/2024

Manor Park’s Weekday Wombles

Every week, twice a week, a group of local volunteers heads out into Manor Park to help keep it looking great. Read our blog to find out what they are getting up to.

Every week, twice a week, a group of local volunteers heads out into Manor Park to help keep it looking great. Led by Bryn Jones, this valiant team, are in the park come rain or shine. Why does the park look so clean these days? You can thank our Wombles. With their litter-pickers in hand…

17/11/2024

Thank-you to all those who turned out for the November Volunteer Morning.